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SMEs now buying commercial vehicles online

E-commerce is slowly changing the landscape of the country’s small and medium enterprises, especially in the delivery private and public transport sector. One particular area is how these firms can quickly gather or replace their fleet of vehicles by the help of online shopping made easier by online vehicle ads platform such as Carmudi Philippines—one of the country’s leading dedicated car buying and selling websites today.

Miggy Gozon, co-owner of Gozon Cars, a dealer of used vehicles based in Pampanga, said that online car classifieds has helped them increased their sales in just a short period of time. “We saw our customer leads jump significantly after just putting our ads in a vertical car selling and buying site as compared to when we were still using traditional media such as newspaper classifieds.”

Gozon further explained that before their business is limited to customers coming from nearby provinces and shoppers from Metro Manila who are looking to score a bargain. However, after posting their vehicles online, they receive leads—in the form of calls and emails—from different places. “Some we just have to turn down, as we could not ship the vehicle to their place,” adds Gozon.

The Pampanga dealer is not alone in these changing times. Many dealers who have posted in Carmudi and other online car buying and selling site have also received tremendous leads over the past few months. In the recent report from Chamber of Automotive Manufacturers of the Philippines Inc. (Campi) and the Truck Manufacturers Association (TMA), last year vehicle car sales in the Philippines has grown by 30-percent with 234,747 units sold. While it is hard to track how online car ads have contributed to this record performance, it is safe to assume that the Internet has provided a platform where vehicle sellers and buyers meet.

Subir Lohani, managing director of Carmudi Philippines, explains that their website and apps have shortened the car buying process for many of their site visitors. “You can easily narrow your search, compose your shortlist and even negotiate when you use our platform. Gone are the days when dealerships potential customers are only those around him.”

Lohani explained that what actually takes weeks of rigorous surveying for a brand new or used vehicle- be it cars, motorcycles or commercial vehicles can now be done in as little as a few hours. “We live by the what-you-see-is-what-you-get dogma. What is posted on our site from pictures to its information are accurate and optimized for better user experience.”

He also adds that on the side of the dealer, their website can help them clear their inventory fast without compromising their ROIs. “We know that car prices devaluate fast. Instead of it sitting on park lots, we want it to find a suitable buyer who also wants the exact car so that he can use it for a variety of purposes from commuting to work up to performing deliveries for his business.”

Today, several growing industries that require the services of vehicles include the infrastructure sector, SMEs and public transport.